Tag Archives: peat soils

Groundwater quality against a background of human activities and impact of peatland area

Jacek Jaszczyński¹

¹Experimental Station for Land Reclamation and Grassland Farming in Biebrza19-200 Grajewo, Poland, e-mail: j.jaszczynski@op.pl

Abstract:

The main objective of the study was an analysis of groundwater quality in a well on an extensive agricultural farm located near in the vicinity of peatlands. The influence of peatland and human activities on water quality was analysed. Thirty-six series of water samples were collected for the period from May 2000 to November 2005 from the well located at the farm and from wells located in the transect on the peatland area. In the collected water samples of pH and concentration of N-NO3, N-NH4, P, DOC, Na, K, Fe and Cl were determined. Meanvalues of N-NO3, K, Na and Cl concentrations in water from the farm well were higher thanconcentrations recorded in the control wells from the transect located on the peatland area. Higher N-NH4 and DOC concentrations were observed in water from the peatland. The resultsof these investigations showed that human activities on the farm area have a larger impact on groundwater quality than the peatland located near the farm.